Electric railway.



PATENTED JAN. 24, 1905.

F. A NSTETT.

ELEGTRIG RAILWAY.

I APPLIOA TION FILED Aim. 9. 1904.

W MW ii mawwanw [NVENTOR WITNESSES.

Patented. January 24, 1905.

UNITED STATES PATENT 'O FICE.

FRANKANSTETT, OF WILKESBARRE, PENNSYLVANIA.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming' part of Letters Patent No. 780,698, dated January 24, 1905.

Application filed August 9, 1904. Serial No. 220,091-

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK Ansrn'rr, a resident of Wilkesbarre, in the county of Luzerne and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Railways; and .I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in electric railways, and more particularly .to third-rail systems, the object of the invention being to provide an improved construction of third rail and shoe to make contact therewith; and the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts, as will be more fully hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view in cross-section, illustrating myv improvements. Fig. 2 is a plan view. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of the shoe, and Fig. 4 is an enlarged View of the third rail in cross-section. a.

1 represents the rails of a track secured on ties 2, which latter also support my improved third rail 3.

4 represents a car-truck of any approved construction, to which adepending arm 5 is secured and carries myjmproved shoe 6. At the lower end of arm 5 a horizontal outwardlyprojecting rectangular box 7 is secured and has a cross-pin 8 therein,which passes through an elongated slot 8 in the shoe 6, and a coiled spring 10 is located between the end of the shoe and the inner end of the box to compensate for lateral movement of the truck and always maintain the shoe in contact with the third rail 3.

Shoe 6 comprises two sections, one of which is bifurcated to receive a lug 11 on the other, and a pin 12 is passed through both sections to pivotally connect them together. The outer section carries a beveled contactblock 13, which is always maintained in contact with the under face of the third rail by a fiat spring 1 1, which latter is secured to the bottom of box 7 at one end and at its other end exerts upward pressure on the outer hinged section of the shoe to maintain the contact-block against the third rail.

The third rail 3 is of inverted-L shape in cross-section and is beveled at its ends to per- A great many slight changes might be made in the general form and arrangement of the parts described without departing from my invention, and hence I would have it understood that I do not restrict myself to the precise details set forth, but consider myself at liberty tomake such slight changes and alterations as fairly fall within the spirit and scope of my invention. I

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is. a

1. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination of a truck, of a box secured thereto, a shoe comprising two mem bers pivoted together, one of said members mounted in said box having an elongated slot therein, a cross-pin in the box projecting through said slot, and a spring behind the members of the shoe in the box exerting outward pressure thereon to compensate for movement of the truck.

2. In an apparatus of the character described, the combination with a truck, of an outwardly-spring-pressed shoe carried thereby, said shoe comprising two members pivoted together and a spring pressing the outer member of said shoe upward.

3.. In an apparatus of the character de-' scribed, the combination with a truck, of a shoe connected therewith and comprising two sections hinged together end-to end, a spring normally presslng the outer section of said said box and pressing against the under outer member of the shoe to hold its contact-block against a third rail.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRANK ANSTETT.

Witnesses:

LOUIS GRoUX, VILLIAM C. ALLAN. 

